On self diagnosis

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I fully support self diagnosis. There could be reasons why a diagnosis is bad. Assuming that you're functioning well enough in life that you have nothing to gain, it obviously costs money. It also could hurt your insurance rates to check the box stating that you've been diagnosed with a mental disorder.

But what really scares me the most is that in many governments (both national and state / provincial) there are laws that impact people who have been officially diagnosed with mental issues. At least in America and all 50 states I don't think Asperger's would be strong enough to qualify for things like loss of voting rights, loss of firearms rights, etc. But it might be stricter in other nations. And laws could change in the future even if a diagnosis is no legal problem today. I'll admit that it's unlikely, but if a diagnosis won't do anything useful for you then why take even a small risk?

I saw a video of Temple Grandin saying that she discourages people form being diagnosed if it's not causing problems in life for similar reasons. She said some of the above happened to her, sounded like she half regretted getting an official diagnosis.

On the other hand, if it is causing problems in your life then you might be unable to obtain access to the proper help without such a diagnosis. So in those cases it makes sense.

I'm 53 and so far my AS has been an unknown nusense. Since self diagnosis from several tests on this site and a few others here and there most of my struggles now make some sense. I've completed an AAS degree in aircraft mechanics and have enough credits to have 2 BS degrees but no degree because I kept changing my major.

With this diagnosis I am able to see why the normal recomendations on how to alter my behavior don't work for me. I now know why I see things and do things so much different than most everyone else I know. I don't feel inadequate and helpless anymore. I have some amunition as I know what I'm fighting now. With more research (I love research as long as I don't have to document it in a paper), I'm sure I'll be able to find a way that works for me to learn to do things that are more accepted by the 'normal' world. Currently finishing up a BS degree in Family and Consumer Science Ed.

It's critical for me to finish this degree so I can get a job as a teacher. It's what I want to do and it's what I'm good at. I can't teach without the degree and license. I live in the USA.

I've been struggling with this in my head since I read the symptoms about AS.
I *know* I have Asperger's. My mom agrees. My Fiancé agrees....my sister told me that I'm just like my cousin that has AS.
But somewhere in the back of my mind, I doubt myself.

I thought that I had Dissociative identity disorder previously because I felt like I had a few different personalities in me at once. One for by myself(the natural me), one in front of family, one in front of friends, one in front of co-workers.
I felt like I shape-shifted to fit in even though I still was awkward. When I got stressed out, I would talk to myself and rock back and forth or side to side. But back then I didn't know what Asperger's was. The symptoms before seemed to fit, but not exactly.... So I wonder now, is there another condition that would fit me better than AS?

I'd like a diagnosis to once and for all prove to myself that there is and always has been something different about me, and its not because I'm "making it up and trying to be weird," as all of the kids in school would say, and even my siblings while we were growing up.

However, I have learned to cope with all that is Me. Just recently I've learned to adjust socially and blend in better. So I wouldn't require any social services or anything like that. So there would be no point of getting a diagnosis.

I dont *need* a diagnosis. But it would officially put the puzzle pieces together so that I can see the whole picture for what it is....that I'm not trying to be weird. It's how I was made.

My self-diagnoses often seem more accurate than those of the doctors'. If you know yourself, and you've read about certain diseases, then I would expect those self-diagnoses would be right.

great topic!

im a self diagnosed, but i feel like bit of a fake too

i think i need the seal of approval to feel like i really belong here, at th same time there's too much evidence for me not to make the self diagnosis

being diagnosed or not shouldnt make any impact on my life, which seems to be functioning pretty normally if not a little too normal (perhaps i try too hard?)

as long as i dont go pop and fall off some sort of deep end one day...

What I think people can fail to see is not everyone has had the same life experiences and options available to them. AS wasn't diagnosed when I was a child. My mother is adamantly opposed the the idea that there is anything wrong with me, so even if I was born a decade later, ignorant parents could prevent a diagnosis. Experts admit that girls are often left undiagnosed. As others have mentioned, some professionals don't even recognize it.

As a community we need to accept that there are those who have struggled all their lives with the issues of AS but for some reason have escaped diagnosis. Even those who may not have enough traits for a full diagnosis still struggle. That is why they are here. We all can learn from each others experiences and insights.